


Contract

by wonker8



Category: Revolution (TV)
Genre: BAMF Charlie, Charlie/Jason is a short epilogue thing that you're welcome to skip, F/M, I don't even know if this makes sense anymore, I really like Danny, Supernatural AU - Freeform, demon!Bass, demon!Jeremy, demon!Strausser, hunter!Mathesons, there's really no romance in this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-04
Updated: 2014-06-04
Packaged: 2018-02-03 08:50:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,003
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1738556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wonker8/pseuds/wonker8
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Danny left his family, it was so that he could be a normal guy. But here was Charlie, reminding him that you could run, but you'll always be brought back to avenge your dad's murder.</p><p>-OR-</p><p>Seven year old Miles makes a contract with a demon by the name of Monroe. This, of course, comes back to bite him and his family in their collective butts.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Contract

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted for 42 prompt challenge on my [LJ](http://wonker8.livejournal.com/20947.html). But I added the details that I couldn't put in the original. To be honest, even this version has been heavily cut down from the original (I didn't want this to become a multi-chapter thing), so if there are any inconsistencies, confusing characters/plots, and general weirdness, please don't hesitate to tell me.
> 
> The Jason/Charlie is just a baby bit at the very end, which you are more than welcome to skip if that's not your cup of tea. The story makes perfect sense even without it. The Rachel/Miles is mainly just a background thing for the sake of plot. It's also one-sided.
> 
> The timeline I'm working from is [this one](http://revolution.wikia.com/wiki/Timeline) from the Revolution Wikia page.

_September 14, 1988_

_The smell of thick incense cloyed the smell of blood and burning flesh. In the candle-lit basement, a young boy of seven years knelt with an ancient book in front of him. On the ground before him, he had painstakingly drawn out the trap with the blood of the lamb that he had killed a few minutes ago. Currently, it was on fire in the middle of the trap. When the fire went out, Miles would know that the demon was here._

_Taking a deep breath, he began the incantation necessary for the summoning. This could go either way for him, he knew. The demon he summoned could actually help him. Or, more likely, the demon he summoned could destroy everything that the Mathesons ever fought for. Miles knew that this could go pretty badly for him and his family. He knew that. But right now, a demon was the only one who could remove the curse on his brother._

_The fire before him went out with a puff of black smoke that filled the entire basement. Miles refused to rub at his eyes, no matter how hard it was to see. He couldn’t show any sign of weakness._

_“Hello?” he called out to the smoke. “Are you there?”_

_“A child called me? How embarrassing.” The demon’s voice was low and sultry. It had a twinge of malice and amusement that sent shivers down Miles’ spine. The smoke was still thick in the air, obscuring the demon’s form, but at least the presence of the voice meant that the demon was indeed here._

_The young boy took a deep breath. He squared his chest and looked straight into the smoke._

_“Make a contract with me.”_

*

May 17, 2031

“No.” Danny shook his head frantically. “No, no, no, no, no. Leave.” He tried to slam the door to his dorm room close, doing everything he could to get away. Oh gods, why now? In a week, he would have finished his finals and went off-grid until graduation. In a week, he would be living a quiet life, away from his crazy family and the chaotic, desperate fights that followed them.

“I know you don’t want to see me,” Charlie snapped. She slammed her hand on the door and forced it to be open. “And I know we promised to stay out of your ‘normal’ life, but we need your help.”

“No!” Danny repeated. “Come on, Charlie! You said that I was done. You said that I could leave. You said that you didn’t need me.”

“That was before dad was killed.”

“What? How’d that happen? Where was mom?” Danny stopped, realizing what his sister was trying to do. “No. No, no, no. You’re not going to drag me into this. I told you; I told mom and I told dad. I’m out of that life. You can’t drag me back there. Don’t tell me any details. Just leave.”

“Damn it, Danny! Dad’s been killed and you don’t even give a shit? Whatever happened to the Matheson Family motto? We’re family. We take care of our own!” Charlie grabbed Danny by the collar, lifting him up slightly (She’s gotten more muscles, he noted humorlessly). “Are you seriously going to just walk away from us?”

The commotion caused a few of the students to peek out of their dorm rooms, yelling out, “Shut up! Some people are trying to study!”

Danny glanced at the glares shot at him and sighed heavily. He opened the door wide to let his sister inside. “… I hate you, Charlie.”

*

“Alright, so what happened?”

Charlie sat on his bed, twiddling her fingers in such an un-Charlie like manner that made Danny hesitate. Danny’s roommate was currently in the library, studying (Jason had a thing against studying in their cramp space of a dorm room). So it was just the two of them in the room: Charlie on the bed, Danny leaning against his desk. 

“Charlie,” Danny said when his sister refused to answer. He felt his voice shake and he knew he wasn’t going to like whatever Charlie had to say (otherwise, his sister would have rubbed it in his face to guilt trip him like she always used to do when they were younger). But if Charlie was going to barge in here and force him back into that life, then she had to man up and talk to him. “What happened?”

“… It’s Monroe. He… He betrayed us.”

Danny blinked. That was funny. Because it sounded almost like Charlie just said…

“He killed dad. Uncle Miles was there at the time. But he… He couldn’t put him down. Mom’s managed to track him down. But she needs both of us.”

Both of them? Last time they needed Danny was when he had been three years old and they needed bait. Charlie was the better tracker of the two. She was the better shot. Sure, he knew more about the demonlore and Latin, but that didn’t mean much when a demon was about to slice off their heads. Besides, Danny hadn’t seen Monroe since he left the family. He wouldn’t even know what to do or say even if he saw the demon!

“Why would she need both of us?” Danny asked exasperated. “She’s never needed my help before.”

Charlie rubbed the back of her neck, obviously uncomfortable by this. “It’s…”

The discomfort was what gave it away. Danny groaned at the realization of what they wanted to try. “Are you serious? We’re sending Monroe back to hell?” 

Charlie nodded.

That made sense. Then yeah, they would need demonlore. Danny frowned and tapped his chin, thinking this through carefully. “How’s Uncle Miles taking this? Monroe’s been his demon since they were kids, right?” Danny paused. “But what about the contract Uncle Miles made with him? Wouldn’t killing or sending Monroe back to hell negate the terms of the contract and make Uncle Miles… dead or whatever?”

His sister looked up and glared at him. “That’s why we need your help, dumbass. You’re the scholar of the family now.” She threw him a bag filled with Latin scripts. Their dad’s notes, Danny noted absent-mindedly. “Figure out how to get rid of Monroe without killing Uncle Miles.”

Danny sighed but picked the bag up reluctantly. “Charlie, breaking demon contracts isn’t that simple. I can try to look into it, but without talking to Uncle Miles and asking him about the details of the contract, I won’t be able to figure anything out, even with dad’s notes.”

Charlie nodded; her lips pressed firmly together. “Yeah, I know. We’re going to see Uncle Miles first. Then we’re going to where mom is to bring Monroe down.”

“He’s not with mom?”

Danger flashed in Charlie’s eyes, warning Danny to drop the subject. Okay, so something touchy happened. Danny frowned but didn’t press for more information. He would find out eventually when they got to Uncle Miles.

“You better not get too sick while reading in the car,” Charlie said finally as she stood up from the bed. “Because we’re going to need to travel all night if we want to get back to mom on time.”

“Of course, we are,” Danny mumbled, shaking his head. “Alright. Let’s go.”

“Don’t need to tell your roommate you're leaving? Danny, once this is over, I’m going to bring you back here. You don’t have to drop all of your life here for us.”

“Knowing Jason, he probably won’t be back in the room for a while anyways,” Danny said with a shrug. It wasn’t that he didn’t care all that much about Jason (in fact, Jason was one of the few people who Danny could call a friend). But if he admitted that he had to tell Jason that he was leaving, he feared that it would be too real. Like it meant that he was leaving college and going back to family business. And he wasn’t ready for that kind of a commitment. “It’ll be better that we go, finish it up quickly, and come back. So let’s get going.”

Charlie gave him a lopsided grin. Almost as if she was having a hard time figuring out whether she was happy that Danny was back or worried that she would be designated babysitter again. To be honest, Danny didn’t want to know the answer either.

*

May 18, 2031

“Danny, wake up.”

He mumbled a little and held up his hand. “I’m up, I’m up.” He had learned when he was young that if he didn’t assure Charlie that he was up, she liked to physically make sure that you were by smacking you. He yawned loudly and stretched before turning to his sister.

“We here?”

A glance at the clock let him know that it was a few minutes past midnight. Despite that, the lights and sounds of the city blared all around them. They were parked in front of the family home, which made Danny a little uncomfortable. He hadn’t been here since leaving the family to go to college. He hadn’t come home for vacation, opting instead to find a new place to live and a job to pay for it. It felt odd to be back after all this time.

“Home sweet home.” Charlie smacked him lightly on the shoulder. “C’mon, I’ll take you to the scene of the crime.”

“I thought we were here to see Uncle Miles,” Danny pointed out. He frowned but got out of the car, just as Charlie was doing. He then followed her into the house that he had been so sure that he had abandoned a long time ago.

“We are. He hasn’t left the house since dad died.”

They walked in past the police investigation tapes. Normally, Danny would have raised a brow about trespassing through a scene of a crime, but apparently everyone else in his family was doing it, so why the hell not? They walked into the living room, where the police had marked where their dad’s corpse had been with white chalk. There were more investigation tapes here, blocking their way, but Charlie just walked through them without care. 

Lo and behold, upon the couch, staring at the white outline was Uncle Miles. He had a bottle of whiskey in one hand (empty, Danny noted) and a faraway look on his face. He did not react to the two of them walking in.

“Hey Uncle,” Danny greeted.

No response.

“Miles,” Charlie said. She knelt in front of Miles, a surprisingly gentle look on her face. “Miles?” 

Still no response.

Charlie rolled her eyes before slapping Miles across the face. “Miles, wake up.”

Their uncle flailed, hands coming up to defend himself, mouth open ready to shout, when he realized who was in front of him. He frowned and tilted his head. “Charlie,” he said. Then with a more scandalized shock, “Danny?”

“Hey Uncle Miles,” Danny repeated. 

“What are you doing here? Don’t you have college to graduate from?”

“Great to see you, too,” Danny mumbled.

“He’s here to help us,” Charlie told Miles.

There was a small pause as the alcohol-fogged brain processed that. “You’re going to send Bass to hell.”

“That’s right. And I need you to tell Danny about the conditions of the contract, because you’re not going to get all ‘I’m-Miles-Matheson-and-I-blame-the-world’s-problem-on-myself’ on us. We’re going to fix this, Miles.”

Was Charlie being… gentle? Danny raised a brow. Now this was certainly new. Granted, their dad was dead, so he supposed that factored in with Uncle Miles’ stupor. But for Charlie to be gentle? Just how had their dad died for her to be like this? Just what exactly happened while Danny left for college?

Miles shook his head. “No. You… You can’t send him back to hell.”

“He killed my dad,” Charlie snapped. “He killed _your_ brother. And you’re going to defend him? Look, we’re going to make sure that you don’t die with him because of that stupid contract. Just tell us the conditions of it so we can prevent it!”

“You don’t understand!” Miles put the whiskey bottle down. “We can’t send him back to hell. That’s going to make things worse.”

Charlie groaned, throwing her arms up in the air in exasperation. She went to grab Miles, who just evaded with ease, despite probably being drunk off his ass. So of course, this meant that it was up to Danny to figure out what the cryptic meaning behind Miles’ words were. He closed his eyes for a second, drowning out the arguing duo, who were now in a physical fight.

“He’s important,” Danny concluded, opening his eyes.

The other two paused and stared at him. Charlie looked confused while Miles just sighed. 

“Yup,” Miles agreed. “He’s important.”

“Explain,” Charlie demanded.

Miles sighed, pushing Charlie off as he stood around awkwardly. He rubbed the back of his neck as he tried to gather his thoughts. “Look, when I first summoned Bass…”

*

_September 12, 1988_

_Ben screamed and thrashed against the restraints, yelling out curse words as the pain spread through his body. For a few seconds his body went limp, and he let out a shudder of relief before the pain started up again. His father was by his side, trying to encourage him to stay strong, while his mother flipped through the books, trying to find something - _anything_ \- that would make her son feel alright again._

_Seven year old Miles stared at the scene before him from the doorway. His lips thinned into a line and he stalked away, knowing that there had to be a better way._

_*_

_He heard it as a whisper. It was in the middle of the night and he had been thirsty (Not to mention, how could anyone sleep with Ben still screaming?). He walked down the stairs towards the kitchen when he spotted his parents. They were furiously whispering at each other, which Miles had only seen whenever the two disagreed about something._

_“We are hunters,” his father hissed._

_“And Ben is dying,” his mother whispered back._

_“You’re talking about summoning a demon! Even if we make a deal with one, there’s no guarantee that there’ll be no backlash. And I’m not just talking about from the demonkind.”_

_“You’re worried that the other hunters will turn on us?” His mother wrapped her arms around herself, rocking back and forth. “But they wouldn’t do that, would they? After all that we’ve done for them? After all of our sacrifices?”_

_“I don’t know what they’ll do. Honey, I want to help Ben as much as you do, but we can’t get a demon to heal a demon curse. They’re not trustworthy. Not to mention we don’t know how high level a curse this is.”_

_“Then we call someone high. Like Monroe-”_

_“No. That’s final!”_

_But it wasn’t. They kept whispering back and forth, debating the same topic. His mother was convinced that this was the right thing to do. His father, not so much. Around and around they went, switching sides, trying different tactics, and even discussing creating a contract with this “Monroe” and the potential conditions for it._

_It was what gave Miles the idea. It was what inspired him._

*

May 18, 2031

“You summoned him to heal dad?” Charlie exclaimed, looking at Miles as if he had sprouted wings. “Then why the hell did he stay afterwards? He had no reason to stay with you after he healed dad.”

“Unless the contract wasn’t to heal him,” Danny deduced. He looked carefully at his Uncle, who was eyeing the whiskey bottle. “Healing dad was just a side thing that Monroe did for you. Otherwise, it makes no sense as to why he would have stayed with you all this time. Uncle Miles, what the hell did you ask of him?”

Miles pressed his fist against his forehead, shoulders going rigid at the question. “Nothing. I asked for no-” 

But before he could finish the sentence, he doubled over, letting out a yelp of shock and pain. He cradled his left arm, hissing softly under his breath. Then he glared at the two of them.

“Where’s Rachel?” he grounded out.

“Mom? She was locating Monroe,” Charlie supplied.

Miles let out another shout of pain and screwed his eyes shut tight. “Call her. Tell her that if she wants me to be sane, then she’s needs to stop trying to break Bass’ arm.”

Charlie looked thorn for a bit but when Miles groaned and cursed, she quickly made up her mind. She pulled out her phone and took a step out of the living room, leaving Danny alone with his suffering Uncle.

“A life bond,” Danny mumbled, shaking his head. “You bounded him to your life to keep him here. If he gets hurt, you get hurt. If you get hurt, he does, too. If he gets sent to hell, you’ll go down there with him, wouldn’t you, Uncle?”

Miles let out a pained chuckle. “You were always the smarter of the two.” He nodded. “Yeah. It’s why he’s walking around in a human form without having to possess anyone. It’s also why when I age, he ages, too. It’s also why it’s in his personal interest to keep me healthy and alive.”

“You came up with this when you were seven?”

“Really? I’m in pain and that’s all you can focus on?”

“What else did you two agree on as part of the contract? Uncle Miles, if you gave me the details, I might be able to find a loophole.”

“Right, because that’s why we sent you off to college, right? So you can educate yourself on demonology to come back to the family. Danny, I’m only going to tell you this once. Leave. You did it once and you can do it again. Don’t come back here. You can live happily without any of the crazy batshit things we do. Get yourself a nice girl. Settle down.”

Danny laughed at that. Bitter. Because Uncle Miles did not get to tell him what to do. Not now, after this screw up with Monroe. “Uncle Miles, my father is dead because of your demon. You don’t get to tell me to leave.”

Charlie walked back into the room, pale and holding the phone in her hand as if it was covered with blood. She looked at them, her body shaking slightly (from fear or anger, Danny wasn’t sure). “Mom didn’t pick up,” she began, barely suppressing a shudder.

“Who picked up then?” Miles demanded as he forced himself to stand up. “Charlie, who was on the other line?”

She gulped and licked her lips. “He called himself Strausser. He said… He said that if we don’t bring you to him, then he’ll kill mom and break Monroe’s bones one by one until you died from the pain.”

Miles closed his eyes. “Damn,” he muttered.

“You know him?” Danny pressed. He didn’t like this. Dealing with Monroe and contracts were bad enough, but if they had to fight off another demon as well…

“He’s not just going to kill Rachel,” Miles said, looking at both of them seriously. “He’s going to torture her. Maybe conjure up a curse and watch as she died slowly. Damn it. Of all the demons, why Strausser?”

“You know him personally?” Charlie asked. 

“He’s the reason why I called Monroe in the first place. He cursed Ben.”

The three glanced at one another uneasily. Then Miles straightened up, created a makeshift sling using his jacket, and walked towards the door. He paused when he realized the other two weren’t following.

“What are you waiting for? You heard Strausser. We have places to be.”

“But if he’s going to torture and kill mom, don’t you think he’s going to do worse to you?” Danny asked.

Miles paused only for a second. Then he smiled. “He can’t hurt me as long as the contract’s in place.”

Charlie looked at Miles’ arm but didn’t say anything. But her silent look at Danny spoke enough. They didn’t know what Strausser was capable of or what he might do. It would be for the best if Danny kept looking through the documents and continued to bother Miles about the details of the contract. 

*

_September 14, 1988_

_“I accept your conditions.”_

_Miles stared in fascination as the smoke before him began to clear. Instead of a giant demon as Miles had expected, a young boy who looked to be Miles’ age stood before him. The boy gave him a bright smile, dimples obvious._

_“My brother-” Miles began._

_The boy rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah. I know. Let’s go see him.”_

_*_

_The boy pressed his hand on Ben’s forehead with a frown. “Strausser,” he mumbled. “Your family ticked off the wrong demon this time.”_

_“What’s that supposed to mean?” Miles demanded. “And Ben’s going to be alright, right?”_

_“Strausser’s specialty is curses. Look, I’m pretty damn powerful, but this is Strausser’s thing. As in, he’s spent nearly all of his demon life perfecting it.”_

_“But the contract-”_

_“I know the contract, child. I’m going to make Ben better. I just need to have a firm talk with my underling first.”_

_“… Your underling?”_

_The boy rolled his eyes and turned around to face Miles. “Did you seriously summon me without researching who I am? I am General Monroe of Lucifer’s army. Strausser works for me. Well, I guess that’s worked for me. Huh. Until the contract’s over, I suppose I’m not General Monroe anymore…”_

_“Then… it’s not going to work?”_

_“Relax, he’ll obey. He doesn’t know about the contract. Until he and the others realize it, I’ll have a say in their plans. So think of it like… having your own little mole inside.” The boy began to walk out of the room, striding confidently as if he owned this place._

_Miles looked down at his hands. “Bass.”_

_The boy stopped and turned back. “What?”_

_“Your name. If you’re not General Monroe anymore, you can be Bass.”_

_There was a soft chuckle. “Alright,” the boy said as he stepped towards Miles. “I’ll be Bass. And you’ll be Miles.”_

__*

May 18, 2031

The sun was beginning to peek over the horizon by the time they got to the warehouse. They would have gotten here earlier, but they had stopped to grab another bottle of whiskey to dull the pain for Miles. The three of them armed themselves with the small armory in the trunk of Charlie’s car, grabbing as much ammo and holy water, just in case. They didn’t know what awaited them on the other side of the warehouse. For all they knew, they could be walking straight into a death trap. 

Gulping softly, Danny followed Charlie and Miles as they walked boldly towards the door.

“Wait, we’re using the front door?” Danny couldn’t help but to ask.

“They have Monroe,” Miles reminded them. “He’ll know that I’m here.”

Danny nodded slowly. “Right.”

Then the two stopped in front of the door, staring at it. Charlie rolled her eyes and kicked the door open for them. The minute the door opened, the three of them raised their guns. Danny hadn’t done this in a while (since he left home for college, actually) and felt kind of silly holding a gun again. Hopefully, things wouldn’t be so bad that he had to fire…

But what greeted them was silence. Danny’ mom was unconscious and bound against the wall. Standing next to her was a bearded man that Danny had never seen before. In the middle of the warehouse, Monroe stood with a blonde man that Danny had never seen before. From the way Miles tensed, he got the feeling that his Uncle knew both men. Well, he supposed they were probably demons. Charlie, meanwhile, looked just as lost as he did. For whatever reason, he found that oddly comforting.

“Miles,” Monroe said. He looked stern. Not quite angry, but a little frustrated. His left arm was also in a makeshift sling from parts of a shirt (Whose, Danny wasn’t sure). He took a hesitating step forward, glanced at the man beside him, who nodded in permission. Then he took another step forward. And another.

Charlie tensed and raised the gun, but Miles motioned for the two of them to stand down. He walked forward, looking just as tense and stern, but not bringing his gun up. Charlie glanced at Danny, asking him with her eyes what was going on. Like he knew what was in their crazy uncle’s mind!

Then Monroe’s face lit up, a bright smile lighting his eyes and lips. He opened his arms and pulled Miles into a hug. Both Charlie and Danny exchanged shocked looks, debating whether they should raise their guns or not. But it didn’t look like their uncle was in immediate danger. They should watch what happened first.

“Bass,” Miles mumbled, returning the hug with just as fierce desperation. “Bass, damn it. Why did you do that?”

“Miles?” Bass whispers back, confused now.

“I’m sorry.”

And before anybody could blink, Miles pulled the trigger.

And in the next second, three things happened all at once: Monroe’s body slumped forward into Miles’ hold, the blonde man darted forward to grab Monroe, and Charlie shot him in the knee. With the following second, Charlie spun and fired down the other men by their mother. By the time Danny’s brain registered what had happened, the two men were down for the count, and both Miles and Monroe were on the ground, bleeding. 

“... Why?” Monroe whispered. 

Ah good. Their uncle wasn’t that crazy enough to kill Monroe completely.

“Because,” Miles whispered back as if that was an actual reason.

“Danny!” Charlie motioned for her dumbfounded brother to take care of things. She pushed Monroe out of Miles’ arms and shoved him non-gently to the side. She then tried to stop her uncle from bleeding out, despite the fact that he wasn't the one who was shot. But as soon as she spotted any movement from the other two demons in the warehouse, she raised her gun at them, reminding them who was in charge.

“Jesus,” Danny mumbled. But he did as bid. Why wouldn’t he? His family called him back for this, after all.

He knelt next to Monroe, who looked up at him with confusion. Danny just gave him a tight smile before beginning to chant. Jason had given him a strange look when he found out that Danny was taking a Latin course. His roommate didn’t know then, but the reason why Danny took the class wasn’t because he was interested in a dead language as he said he was. No. It was because he was curious about the chants that he had heard his family recite a million times. And now he knew what to say because not only had them memorized, but he understood what he was saying.

Despite the fact that he hadn’t drawn any binding spells, the magic of the words reacted with Monroe’s blood. It created a makeshift seal, holding the two of them in a suspended time, away from the rest of the world. It should be enough to stop the bleeding and the dying for now. It should also be enough to talk about those pesky details of the contract.

“You always were the smarter one,” Monroe muttered, shaking his head fondly. How similar to Uncle Miles. Danny faintly wondered if it was the result of the life bond. “What are you doing back, Danny? College not work out for you?”

“College was going fine until you killed my dad,” Danny reminded him.

Monroe tilted his head, looking up at Danny from the ground with amusement. “Did that bother you? Are you going to kill me as revenge?”

“If I kill you, Uncle Miles dies. Tell me the conditions of the contract.”

Suddenly, Monroe’s amusement evaporated and he put on a poker face. “No,” he said.

“If you don’t, Uncle Miles is going to die.”

Monroe shrugged. “Don’t care. Never did.”

Danny sighed. Damn demons and damn Uncle Miles! He rubbed his temples as he slowly tried to piece the puzzle by himself. What did he know? He knew that Uncle Miles made a contract with Monroe that involved a life bond. He didn’t know any other details of the contract, but as a by-product of it, Monroe saved Ben. Now why would a demon save a human when it wasn’t part of the contract? It made sense as to why Monroe wouldn’t want to talk about the contract. It was probably embarrassing, especially for a demon who apparently ranked pretty high. Then why didn’t Uncle Miles want to talk about it…?

“Hey… did you kill my dad because you were bored or because of the contract?”

Monroe’s poker face did not shatter. He continued to look at Danny head on, not saying anything.

But that action spoke more words than Danny could bare to hear. Danny buried his face in his hands. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” he groaned. “Is that why Uncle Miles was…?”

The demon sighed softly. “For what it’s worth, I am sorry,” he said.

And that nailed the coffin shut. If Danny hadn’t been sure of it before, he was 100% certain of it now. Because there was no such thing as a demon who didn’t brag about their kill. Unless the kill was against their will, like… shall we say, a contract. 

“You do everything Miles says,” Danny concluded. “That’s the contract.”

Monroe shook his head. “No. I just grant his wish. Conscious or not.” 

“So he wanted you to hug him? That’s why you greeted him like that?”

The demon nodded. “Obviously.”

“And he wanted dad to live, which is why you got rid of the curse when you first made the contract…”

“Exactly.”

“But why would Uncle Miles want my dad dead suddenly?”

Monroe’s eyes trailed away from Danny towards the general direction of where Rachel had been. Danny felt sick. 

“You have got to be kidding me!” If he had been someone else (like Charlie), he would have accused Monroe of lying. But the thing was that the demon had nothing to gain by it. “So everything that you’ve ever done since making that contract has been granting Uncle Miles’ wishes?”

“Yes.”

“But why the hell would you ever agree to that kind of a contract?!”

Monroe laughed. “Because he signed over his family. Any Matheson that dies on a hunt, any soul the Mathesons couldn’t protect, are all sent to hell.”

“What?” Hell no. Even Uncle Miles, seven years old or not, could _not_ have been that stupid!

“Didn’t you think that it’s odd that the Mathesons die so easily? How many family funerals have you been to, Danny? Why do you think that your family is always the target of a demon attack?” Monroe’s voice was light, mocking. He was taking sweet pleasure out of Danny’s despair. “It was all so that your darling Uncle could have a personal slave.”

Danny gulped. Because if what Monroe was saying was true… Then Charlie and his mother were in danger. His father was probably being tortured in hell, never mind who knew how many others. All because Uncle Miles…

“Make a contract with me.”

Monroe raised an eyebrow. “After all of that, your grand solution is to make yet another contract?”

“Serve the Matheson family. Until the last Matheson ceases to breath, protect us and serve us.”

The demon snorted. “Right. I’m going to agree to that.”

“And give everyone who’s been sent to hell by Miles’ stupidity another chance. Give them a fair test. If they pass, they go where they’re supposed to. That includes all the Mathesons and the innocent victims. That also includes any future Mathesons.”

“Still not going to agree to it.”

“Dissolve the contract you have with Uncle Miles. Replace it with this one.”

Monroe yawned. “Not agreeing.”

Danny smiled at that. “Oh, but _Bass_ , you have to. Because that’s Uncle Miles’ wish.”

The two looked at each other for a second, Danny smiling sweetly and Monroe looking shocked. Then the demon threw his head back and laughed.

“Oh, you always were the smarter one,” he said. “But Danny, that’s not enough. I need one more thing if the contract is to be sealed.”

“A sacrifice, right? I’ve read dad’s notes. In order to summon a demon and in order to bind a contract, a sacrifice is necessary.”

And that was just it, wasn’t it? The true reason why Danny had activated this particular spell. Not just to stop his uncle from bleeding out from a wound he didn't have, but because of a small asterisk of the contract. And well, to be honest, this was also the reason why he was here now. Why his mother chose him. Why Charlie had to bring him back. The reason why Danny knew that he could never walk away from his family. Because Danny wasn't very strong or fast. He wasn't like Charlie or Uncle Miles or even his mother. His brain just didn't work that way. But there was another thing that he did very well.

He could figure things out. He could makes the wrongs right. 

Danny opened his arms wide. “Take me.”

The demon laughed again, a little uncertain this time. Hesitant. As if a demon could feel pity for a human. “Child, do you know what you’re signing up for?”

“An eternity of torment,” Danny answered. “My family’s protection. Correcting my uncle’s mistake. Stopping Lucifer’s General from returning to Hell. I think they’re all pretty standard things.”

“... I accept your conditions.”

*

_May 13, 2013_

_“Enough games, Monroe. It’s time for you to come home.”_

_Monroe glanced up from his drink at the blonde man. It took him a few minutes to figure out who it was, but in the end, he got it. He always got it after all. Jeremy Baker. They had run into the blonde a few days ago, and rescued him from a windigo. But the man in front of him right now wasn't just an ordinary hiker._

_A quick glance to the side assured him that Miles was too busy drowning himself in alcohol to notice anyone who didn’t fit his gloom. Amazing how easily a hunter's guard went down when they believed that a demon would always protect them._

_“Lucifer?” Monroe asked, a small smile on his face. “Is that you?”_

_“Like this face?” The blonde man asked, doing a small twirl before him. “His name is Jeremy Baker. I thought he suited my needs quite well.”_

_“Can’t argue,” Monroe agreed, tilting his glass of bourbon at the other demon. He didn't mention that he knew the owner of the body. There was no need for it. Lucifer probably already knew about that journey. Lucifer liked keeping a tab on his toys, after all. “So what brings the Prince of Darkness to this crappy bar?”_

_Lucifer slid into the barstool next to Monroe. He took Monroe’s drink and sipped it, appreciative smile on his face. “I have a plan. I need my General back.” He glanced over at Miles, the smile melting away into a sneer. “Ditch him.”_

_“But my contract with him had been so much fun!”_

_“Ditch him.” Lucifer smiled again, as if that would soften the harsh order he had just given. He pressed the empty glass back in Monroe’s hands. “I’ll be waiting.”_

_Then he was gone, leaving Monroe with an empty glass in hand and a depressed Miles by his side. Ditch the Matheson and the contract…? Monroe smirked. He did love a challenge._

_“Hey Miles, let’s get you out of here.”_

_“Bass?” Miles mumbled as he allowed his demon to help him up. “Bass, why doesn’t she love me back? Why doesn’t she want me?”_

_Poor, pathetic fool..._

_“Shall I make her desire you?”_

_“Don’t possess her, damn it! That’s not the same thing.”_

_Monroe smiled. “Don't worry, Miles. You can always leave it to me.”_

__

**Author's Note:**

> May 19, 2031
> 
> If there was one thing Jason Neville had learned about Danny Matheson, it was that Danny was pretty antisocial. That said, Danny was usually a sweet enough guy that most people didn’t mind hanging out with him. It was just that the guy often got really nervous when there were too many people around. Almost as if he was afraid that someone was going to get hurt. That was why he spent most of his time either in class, at the cafeteria, or in his room.
> 
> Jason, like all other hunters, had heard of the Mathesons. Unlike the other hunter families, they were more likely to be killed by demons (which pretty much meant that they were the best hunters. Why else would demons target them?). It was the reason why he had been so willing to become Danny’s friend (Because if a Matheson was here, it meant that there were lots of supernatural activity in this area, right?). It had been the reason why he had been okay with rooming with the guy. Of course, when he realized that Danny was actually pretty normal and didn’t even like to hunt, Jason gave up partly. It didn’t mean that they were no longer friends. It just meant that Jason liked to go away from time to time to the “library” to hunt. And yeah, he never really told Danny that he was a hunter, too. But Jason thought it had been pretty obvious…
> 
> So for him to walk into the dorm room on Monday (Finals. Crap. He didn’t think he missed a test, but he didn't have any time to study) and realize that there was a random girl, putting things into a box, and Danny was nowhere in sight? His reaction was to flip out.
> 
> “Who the hell are you and why are you putting my things in that box?” he demanded. His eyes quickly darted around the room, looking for any signs that the protection spells that he had put up around the room were disturbed. Nothing. Okay, so this girl in front of him was a human. It didn't reassure of him of anything, however.
> 
> “Sorry. That was yours?” she asked. She pulled Jason’s books back out. “Sorry. I didn’t know. I’m just…” 
> 
> She looked up and Jason felt like he’d seen her somewhere before. But before he could focus on the nagging feeling, all he could focus on was how pale she was, how red and puffy her eyes were, and how she sniffled as if she couldn’t quite breathe properly. And oh gods. He had seen those looks too often to know what it meant.
> 
> “Are you… Are you Jason?” she asked. “Danny’s roommate, right?”
> 
> He nodded dumbly. But he knew what she was going to say now. He knew that he recognized her. She was a Matheson. 
> 
> “I’m Charlie,” she continued. “I’m his sister.” She closed her eyes for a second, taking a shuddering breath. “Was. Danny’s not coming back.”
> 
> She picked up the box, leaving the rest of Danny’s stuff in the room. She hurried towards the door, as if staying in this room with Jason was suffocating her. But he couldn’t let this be the end. Not like this. Danny had been a friend, damn it. 
> 
> “What killed him?” Jason demanded. “Which monster?”
> 
> She stopped to look back at him. “Are you a hunter?” she asked, disbelief clear in her voice.
> 
> He nodded. “Which monster?” he repeated.
> 
> The best way to say it was that she had a sudden change. In one second, she was a grieving sister. In the next, she was a Matheson hunter that Jason heard about from the rumors. Her shoulders squared and the quiver in her voice was gone. She looked straight in Jason’s eyes and said the one thing that he didn’t expect.
> 
> “Would you like to hunt with me?”
> 
> And this might sound a little ridiculous, but truth be told, that was how Jason met the love of his life.


End file.
